Old Tales
by JustSomeoneElse
Summary: A series of one-shots, drabbles and ficlets centered around the adult and elderly characters of El Tigre. The ratings, genres, characters and pairings may vary.
1. Game Night

**Summary: A collection of loosely interconnected stories/one-shots/drabbles centered around the adults and elderly characters of El Tigre.**

 **Chapter summary:** The only thing more fun than Game Night was winning on Game Night. The only thing more fun than winning? Cheating, of course!

 **Genre(s):** Humor/General.

 **Disclaimer: El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera is copyrighted by Nick, Mexopolis and its creators Jorge R. Gutierrez and Sandra Equihua. Any referenced works are owned by their respective creators.**

* * *

Game Night was always lively at Casa de Adiós.

Poker, chess, darts, whatever the game was, it brought joy to many of the elderly and retired. One could almost see the gears turning inside their heads and the fire that lighted their eyes when they were playing! For Game Night brought many memories to the (mostly) retired ex-villains, in that it gave them the opportunity to practice one of the most honorable, indispensable abilities of their careers.

Cheating.

Ah, yes, nothing like a good battle of trickery, wits and treachery to keep them old brains working. What a joy it was- not to win, no ( _although the dough and prizes that came with winning were very appreciated_ ) - but to triumph through dirty tactics and get away with it.

Many were the tricks one learned through the years, one more underhanded than the previous one. But, surely, nothing ever beat the classics. The old ones were unbeatable, as even after years and years they still worked like a charm.

El Tarantula, for example, loved the 'card-up-their-sleeve' tactic. Or rather, sleeves- his multiple arms sure came in handy when he had to cheat in a poker game… like he was doing at the moment.

Comrade Chaos, on the other hand, favored his beloved pairs of loaded dice to do the job; so obvious it should be, that most didn't notice until it was too late- the Russian villain had a way of distracting people with his stories… and of intimidating them when they noticed his tricks. Even if it was just the simple board game he was playing with three other guys.

El Tarantula and Comrade Chaos were not the only ones having fun tonight. Many other villainous elderly were sure to walk away with some extra cash after the games.

Sitting- er, resting, on his favorite armchair was Mano Negra. Now, Mano Negra couldn't really go all-out as much as he wanted, since he didn't really have his famous hand most of the time… or the rest of his body. So, instead of cheating, Mano Negra made a little game out of finding out who was tricking who, what tactic they were using and… busting them. It was quite a fun pastime, he had to admit. When he didn't ruin the cheating directly, he made the poor sucker ruin it on his own. Neither required much, to be honest. His loud, commanding voice and his stiff, grumpy articulation did wonders on their own.

On one corner, Tenebrous Toreador could be seen playing the classic "oh no, I'm so clumsy that I knocked the chess piece off the table! Please friend, could you kindly get it for me, for my back is killing me? I surely won't change the pieces' placement in my favor while you do that, I swear!" on his adversary.

…The name was a work in progress.

The current residents were not the only ones who liked to play though. Casa de Adiós often had visitors. Sometimes they were family members who came to visit and check on the old villains, other times came the young volunteers that were assigned there. Both, particularly the latter, were prone to being victims of the villains' cheating. The volunteers were almost too easy to trick, in fact.

Once in a while, however, worthy adversaries would appear.

Some of the elderly villains that were still active liked to pay the old retirement home a visit. Puma Loco was the most frequent one, and he often walked out of the place with gold, coins, jewelry and whatever else the others had bet. The 'mirror behind head' trick never failed.

Don Baffi and General Chapuza came from time to time as well. The leaders of the Moustache Mafia and Zombie Town usually came for information rather than dough, but when they were in the mood for playing around, they had this neat little tricks involving facial hair and falling eyeballs.

But those were nothing compared to the undefeated champion of cheating.

A loud bang broke through the endless chatter and cheery atmosphere. All the retired villains looked up towards the entrance.

There she was, the master of cards, the queen of darts and the oldest member and current leader of the devious Flock of Fury, Lady Gobbler!

The doors closed behind her as she skittered through the room. The other villains returned to their games and continued with their business.

The turkey-themed villainess had an astounding skill when it came to cheating. Her tactics were very basic and obvious most of the time, and that was when she wasn't blatantly using her technology to help her. Because of that, one would think that making strategies to win against her and foil her cheating would be easy…

And yet, she always came out as the winner in the end. Always. She threw her opponents for loop with a move or a hand that no one was expecting. By the time you fried your brains trying to figure out how it happened, she would be exiting the building with large sums of money.

To this day, very few were able to read her and figure out her tactics and line of thinking.

And when she lost to someone that wasn't one of those select few… well, there's something fishy for sure. The poor sucker wouldn't know what was coming. But that's a history for another day…

The eldest Aves stopped at the table El Tarantula was currently playing. She hopped and sat in the empty chair. She simply motioned with a nod. The Spanish villain knew it was a bad idea, but seeing the villainess' signature mocking smile irked him so. He narrowed his eyes as he shuffled the cards and prepared for a new game. Pride would his downfall, but he'd be damned if he backed down from a fight like a coward. He'd show her.

It. Was. On.

* * *

El Tarantula, Mano Negra, Comrade Chaos and Tenebrous Toreador were all shivering from the cold. Those barrels really weren't good. And they got splinters too. Ouch.

Lady Gobbler walked out with a wooden cart full with golden coins, money and jewels. She had two pearl necklaces around her neck and a tiny little crown atop her helmet.

"Thank you for the jewels, boys."

She waved as she exited the building, her turkey-like laughter echoing in the night.

Just another night for the cheating master, Lady Gobbler.

The four retired villains just stood there in silence, seething from their humiliating defeat.

"What a woman."

"Shut up, Toreador!"

* * *

 **Author's note: Hey there. This is just another series of one-shots, I know, but I wanted to do a separate one from ToaSY, one that focused on the adult and elderly characters of the series. Because they don't really get much love.**

 **So, if you're interested in Puma Loco, White Pantera, Lady Gobbler, Sartana and other characters like them, check out this one!**

 **Oh, and Tenebrous Toreador actually appeared in the series. In "Eye Caramba" and other episodes we see Casa de Adiós, there was a villain with a toreador uniform in the background. So I just decided to give him a name.**

 **A question: Which adult/elderly character would you like to see more of? (No promises of writing anything and no requests, I'm just curious. Who knows, it might give me some inspiration to write.)**

 **Anyway, hope you guys liked this one.**


	2. Don't Lose Your Head, Old Friend

**Summary:** A collection of loosely interconnected stories/one-shots/drabbles centered around the adults and elderly characters of El Tigre.

 **Chapter summary:** Granpapi tells Manny and Frida a heartwarming tale of friendship, adventure, zombies, scientists and disembodied heads.

 **Genre(s):** Humor/Friendship

 **Warning(s):** A little bit of dark humor I suppose, but it's not that much.

 **Disclaimer: El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera is copyrighted by Nick, Mexopolis and its creators Jorge R. Gutierrez and Sandra Equihua.** **Any referenced works are owned by their respective creators.**

* * *

"So, Granpapi, me and Frida were wondering..."

The elderly Rivera looked up from his newspaper.

"How do you know all that stuff about zombies?"

"Why Manny," Jorge laughed, "we villains always keep tabs on each other's weaknesses. Plus, nobody gonna miss that giant fountain in middle of town."

"Not that," Manny said, "how did you know about the head stuff- you know, that thing you said about zombies taking the head with them and all that junk..."

"Yeah, did that happen to someone before," Frida asked, touching her neck.

"Er... it's long story, not something for you kids to know," Jorge looked to the sides, if Rodolfo found him telling that story to the kids, he wouldn't hear the end of it.

"Oh, please, Grandpapi?" Manny whined. "Please, please, please?" Frida joined in, both making puppy eyes at the old villain.

"Oh, alright, alright!" Jorge exclaimed. "Everything happened a long time ago..."

* * *

A young Puma Loco was playing a nice, friendly game of "Toss the Zombie Head" with his villainous colleagues, Mano Negra, Tenebrous Toreador and his on-and-off girlfriend, Lady Gobbler.

The zombie's body was walking back and forth, its arms uselessly grabbing at the air as it looked for its head. Puma didn't know his name, but this little jerk was one of the main players in Chapuza's Calavera Zombies.

That dirty little no-good undead bastard, if it weren't for him, he and his Matadores would've won!

But Puma wasn't the kind of man that held grudges.

So instead of humilliating this undead guy with the sweet irony of playing soccer with his head, he'd play volleyball with it.

Little did he and the other villains notice, entertained with their game as they were, but there was another zombie in the area. Seeing one of his kind being treated like that, the little guy snuck up behind one of the villains and latched onto the back of his head.

Satisfied with the game, Puma and the others sent the head flying along with its body with hearty laughs.

"Good game, everyone!" laughed Puma.

"Now, that's what I call good entertainment," Lady Gobbler giggled.

"Yeah, that'll show them not mess with the Matadores!" Mano Negra and Tenebrous Toreador high-fived Puma.

That was when they noticed. Hanging from Mano Negra's head... was a tiny zombie!

* * *

"Wait, wait, wait," interrupted Manny. "Was that the same zombie that bit Frida?"

"And who's Tenebrous Toreador?" asked Frida.

"I don't know and he's a retired villain, lives in Casa de Adiós. Can I continue the story, now?!"

"Please."

"Go on, dude."

* * *

That was when they noticed. Hanging from Mano Negra's head... was a tiny zombie!

Naturally, Mano Negra freaked out and asked, no, yelled at them to get it off of him.

Puma Loco, Lady Gobbler and Tenebrous Toreador reassured him that everything was going to be alright, they were going to be there for him.

Then all three villains started to run.

Mano Negra, however, was fast enough to grab Puma, who had the idea of bullying that zombie in the first place, and thus the one at fault here in Mano Negra's eyes.

Lady Gobbler and Tenebrous Toreador continued their escape without looking back. There was no way they'd risk getting bitten as well.

"Sorry, Puma dear, no hard feelings, you understand!" Lady Gobbler yelled in the distance.

"Hope you both stay alive, good luck!" Puma heard Toreador yell.

The villainous Rivera then turned to Mano Negra. "Hey, old pal. You don't need to hold me like that, I'm not abandoning you... I just gotta grab something real quick and-"

Mano Negra's glared like he wanted to burn holes into his head. "You had the idea, Puma. You are going to fix this," he said quite harshly. Though that tone was so typical of him that Puma wouldn't have known he was mad if not for the tight hold he had on him at the moment.

"No worries, I'll do it," Puma gave him his best innocent smile. "But first, eh, put me down, 'kay?"

And thus Puma Loco and Mano Negra began their arduous task.

They tried punching the head-zombie.

 _"Ouch, not me, Loco! The zombie, the zombie! You're hitting me!"_

 _"Yeah, I know."_

And then, luring it with a bait.

 _"No, Mano Negra, this is for the zombie, not you!"_

 _"Braiiiins..."_

They even tried tickling the little jerk.

 _"C'mon, c'mon- ow, it slapped me!"_

 _"Braiiins..."_

 _"Shut up, Mano Negra!"_

Until, finally, Puma Loco had had enough. It was time for extreme measures.

Puma then tied Mano Negra, who was very much like a zombie already, up and tied a rope around the head-zombie. This would work. Just a tug, then he'd get that little bastard off of Mano's head.

"Ready, Mano? No need to answer, go!"

But to Puma's horror, the little zombie hadn't been the only one to go...

There, at there end of the rope, was the little zombie, still attached to Mano's head...only the head wasn't attached to its body anymore.

"Oops."

* * *

"Oops? Oops?! Grandpapi what the heck?!" Manny looked nauseated.

"This is too horrible!" screamed Frida. "The horror, the poor- wait a minute, Mano Negra lives in Casa de Adiós, how's he fine?"

"If you two let me tell my story, I'll get there! Now quiet!"

"Yes, Granpapi..."

* * *

Puma was about to panick, thinking he had just killed his friend. But then...

"Brains..."

"Oh thank goodness, he's still alive!...Sorta."

The Rivera poked and looked at the disembodied head, and oddly enough, Mano Negra was still alive and responding. He wondered, had his friend been completely zombified already? There was only one way to know. One that Puma had wanted to avoid at all costs, but there was no other way now.

Puma had to go to Zombie Town in Calavera and ask Chapuza himself how to fix this.

The walk, or rather, flight to Calavera wasn't long thanks to his Golden Sombrero of Chaos.

Puma walked through the main path. The town looked deserted, but he could feel the whole town's eyes on him, staring at him from the alleys and from their homes.

"Greetings, Rivera. So unsual to see you in this part of Calavera. To what do I own the honor?" a gravely, deep voice asked. Puma didn't need to look to know it was his long-time rival, General Chapuza.

The Rivera turned around to stare down at his arch-nemesis. "Chapuza. You know why I'm here. I know you sent the little jerk to do your dirty work."

Chapuza merely raised an eyebrow, arms folded neatly behind his back. "I beg your pardon?"

Puma narrowed his eyes. He lifted Mano's head with his suit's arm. "I'm talking about this!"

Chapuza blinked at the sight of his rival holding a disembodied head. He recognized it as one of his fellow villains, Mano Negra... and attached to the head was one of his own, Little Toes.

After a few moments of staring at the morbid sight, he turned to Rivera. "And what does this have to do with me?"

Puma fumed. "Everything! You sent him, I know it!"

"And what would I gain from turning Mano Negra into a zombie?"

"Uhm..." Puma himself wasn't sure. "Nevermind that, tell me how to fix this!"

"Again, what do I have to gain from that?"

Puma growled. Chapuza was making this difficult on purpose! "...What do you want?"

Chapuza smirked, "Well, I will gladly aid you in helping our colleague there... if you admit that the Calavera Zombies are better than the Matadores. A small price for your friend's life, no?"

Puma glared at the zombie. He was beyond enraged. That was his pride, his honor at stake! No way he'd ever do it! Getting stuck with a zombified Mano Negra was a million times better than this!

"Braiiins..."

Actually, saying it might not be so bad. He'd only need soap afterwards.

A painful set of words and a bar of soap later, Chapuza told Puma that after the sunset, Mano would remain a zombie forever if they didn't get Little Toes off of him. Chapuza knew a way to do this without reaping the head open, but doing so would also turn him back to normal again, which, in the current state he was in, would kill Mano for sure.

"Well, so what do we do now?!" asked Puma.

"Well, there is one man who could build a machine capable of keeping Mano Negra alive, even in this disembodied state... And he owns me a favor too."

"...Who?"

"Dr. Psyclopsis," answered Chapuza.

"That freak? Really? Ugh, this is getting too troublesome..."

"Quit your complaining when I'm going out of my way to assist you. Now, go to his lab, tell him General Chapuza requires his services- or else- and explain to him the situation at hand- he should either have something useful already or he'll build something in few minutes. When he's done, bring him and his invention to the middle of town- and don't forget Mano's head, of course."

"And this is going to work?"

"Yes, now quit wasting time and go." Chapuza paused and turned to Puma one more time, "Oh, and Puma... don't forget that you and your friend own me a big one now as well. I _will_ call for a favor in return. And I fully expect you to come through with it. Or else."

Puma Loco rolled his eyes, despite being a little uneasy about the threat. He then took of flight and went towards Psyclopsis' secret lab.

* * *

"... Doctor who?"

"Dr. Psyclopsis, mad scientist, villain, had only one good eye."

"...so, like Dr. Jalapeño?"

"Huh? Yeah, yeah, sure," answered Jorge. "There's a photo of him in Casa de Adiós." Jorge paused, in thought, "He... just disappeared one day. No one knows what happened, where he is or if he's even alive."

"...that's kinda dark."

"Yeah..."

There was moment of silence between the three.

"Anyway, where was I?"

"Going to Dr. Whatever's lab?"

"Going to Dr. Whatever's lab!"

* * *

Puma Loco arrived at Dr. Psyclopsis' hideout. He knocked on the door.

"Who's _there_?"

Puma rolled his eyes. "It's Puma Loco. I know you can see me, let me in!"

"Why have _you_ come?"

Puma felt his left eye twitch. Did he really have to speak in such an overly dramatic voice, all the time? He sighed. "Look, Chapuza told me you owned him one, so you better open this stupid door, _or else_."

There was no response, but after a moment of silence, Puma heard him unlock the door- why did the man feel the need to have so many locks, he'd never know.

A tall, gangly man in a lab coat greeted him. "My _apologies_. Please, _do_ enter Mr. Loco."

Puma Loco had never seen a place quite like Dr. Psyclopsis' hideout. There was stuff he'd only seen in sci-fi movies before.

Ignoring his bewildered face, Dr. Psyclopsis asked his guest. "And what does Chapuza require me to for _him_ this time? A laser? A mind-controlling machine, perhaps? A _monster_?"

Puma looked at him, "What? No! I need help with this!" He showed the mad scientist Mano's head and told him what happened.

Dr. Psyclopsis hummed in thought. "I think I might have _just_ the thing you need." He led Puma towards what he supposed was a huge machine and pressed a button on one of the panels. A thick layer of smoke came out of the machine's door, causing the Rivera to cough and close his eyes. When he opened them, the weird mist had dissipated to reveal a huge...

What was that supposed to be? A robot body?

It consisted of a huge, metallic cylindrical machine, which ,he supposed, was the torso, which had two big timers and three smaller ones in it, two metal... things sustaining it- the legs? And another one sticking out of a socket- so the arm, probably. It only had one arm, and no head. Almost as if it was incomplete.

The whole thing didn't really impress Puma Loco much- heck, his Golden Sombrero of Chaos battle suit was a million times better than this piece of garbage! Brilliant mad scientist his butt! How could that thing keep his friend alive?!

His face must've matched his disblief, because Dr. Psyclopsis turned to him and said, "Do not be _fooled_ by its simple design, Mr. Loco. This robotic suit is very much intended to _serve_ as a body for a _living_ being, much like your friend here, yes," he nodded at Mano's head. "It is a rather fortunate _turn_ of events, I've been waiting to test this."

Puma Loco had no time to waste, he had to get back soon or else Mano would be a zombie forever and this whole ordeal would've been for nothing!

"Yeah, yeah, enough of your creepy rambling, let's go! Chapuza told me to take you and this thing and meet him in middle of town or something!"

"Ah, yes. Must be the _Fountain_ Of Agua Negra. It's in the middle _of_ town, the zombies' one true weakness- quite _convenient_."

"Wait, really? Gotta remember that one," Puma muttered to himself. "Let's go, then!" Puma attached a cable to Psyclopsis invention, connecting it to his battle suit, grabbed the villainous scientist with his free robotic claw and took flight.

The rest was simple.

Puma Loco arrived in time to dump his friend in the fountain and turn him back to normal. Dr. Psyclopsis then quickly put the disembodied head within a small recipient full of liquid chemicals- the scientist briefly explained that those would allow him to live and function like a normal human being, or a disembodied head of one, would- and attached him to the robot body. Fortunately, the procedure was a success and Mano Negra would live, for a very, very long time.

Mano Negra wasn't thrilled with his new body at first, but quickly saw the advantages when he pummeled his friend Puma into the ground with only a few punches. He thanked the doctor and walked home to retrieve his Mystical Object of Power and attach it to his new robotic body.

General Chapuza was not happy that Dr. Psyclopsis had babbled about his weakness to his rival, and decided that for that mistake, the mad scientist owned him another favor. After the leader of the zombies had punched him in his one good eye, that is.

And Puma... Puma Loco had saved his friend, learned a whole lot about the reclusive mad scientist of Miracle City and learned his rival's biggest weakness.

All in all, a happy ending for everybody.

The end.

* * *

Manny and Frida sat speechless, gawking at Granpapi Rivera.

"What?" asked Jorge.

"Dude!"

"Granpapi!"

"What, you kids are making no sense!"

"You just...ugh, nevermind Granpapi," Manny sighed.

"What happened with Mano Negra's old body, though?" asked Frida.

"You know... I forgot. Eh, he probably just threw it away."

* * *

"Thanks for the new body, doctor. So you take my old one, and I don't have to pay for my new one. Right?"

"That _is_ correct my friend, _that_ is correct. Dr. Psyclopsis thanks you for your _cooperation_ ," said the mad scientist. "Hahaha...Ahahaha! AHAHAHAHA!"

"Uhm... I'm still here. Doctor."

"Oh... this is _awkward_... Excuse me while I go laugh _maniacally_ in another room. The exit's _that_ way."

Silence.

"Thank you."

* * *

 **Author's note: Sometimes I re-watch some El Tigre episodes to help me write. So when I was re-watching that episode where Frida turns into a zombie, it got me wondering, how did Granpapi know so much about zombification? And then, with the "zombie's gonna take your head with him" I immediatly thought of Mano Negra for some reason. 'What if that had happened before with him and Grandpapi?'**

 **And so this story was born.**

 **By the way, like Tenebrous Toreador, which I explained in the last chapter, Dr. Psyclopsis did appear in the show and that's actually his name. His photo appears in the episode where Manny plays darts against Lady Gobbler.**

 **Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed this story. Tell me what you think of this silly, crackish theory, haha!**


	3. Villains, Family and More I

**Summary:** A collection of loosely interconnected stories/one-shots/drabbles centered around the adults and elderly characters of El Tigre.

 **Chapter summary:**

Villains, their families, and some very worrying ways to bond and spend time together.

 **Genre(s):** Family/Humor

 **Disclaimer: El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera is copyrighted by Nick, Mexopolis and its creators Jorge R. Gutierrez and Sandra Equihua. Any referenced works are owned by their respective creators.**

* * *

"Estúpido El Tigre, if I ever see him or any of those rotten Riveras again, I'll-"

The sound of knocking echoing through his cavern made El Mal Verde stop amid his ramblings. He frowned, annoyed at the interruption- just when he had enough time to clean up the place!

The monstrously huge man was still recovering from his last battle with El Tigre and the whole fiasco that was Sartana's fake tournament, too. Couldn't a giant, man-eating criminal have a moment of peace?!

Storming up to the entrance, he slammed the newly built door of his cave open, "Who dares-?!"

A sudden pain struck the green villain, cutting off whatever threat he had in mind. El Mal Verde rubbed his shins. Just who did this soon-to-be-his-lunch idiot think they were-

"Hey!"

El Mal Verde looked down, looking for the voice's owner and the one who'd dared to strike him so boldly. Much to his surprise, there was no one but a green-skinned old lady in red and black cowboy attire. She glared at him behind her mask, holding a broom decorated with a horse's head in one hand, while the other was on her hip as she tapped her foot, waiting for him to notice her presence.

"Mamá?"

The much shorter old lady snorted. "Finally! About time you noticed me! I've been waiting forever for you to come!" her frown quickly melted into a sweet smile and her tone became saccharine. "It's been so long, mijito. Come here, give your mama a hug."

El Mal Verde blinked but quickly shook off the inital shook and complied. He set his hand down so she could climb on it and gingerly brought her up to his face. The old woman hugged his chin, alternating between nuzzling and kissing his cheek.

The large villain smiled at his mother's affectionate nature. It wasn't everyday he could see his family, what with him never fitting into any of the buildings and being so busy with evil lately.

"It's very nice to see you too, mamá," he gently put her back in the ground. "But if you don't mind me asking... what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at Casa de Adiós?"

"I..." her eyes shifted to the left as she trailed off, "don't... know...? I mean, what Casa? What Adiós? I'm just a confused old woman," she shrugged and and gave him a sheepish smile.

El Mal Verde's frown told her he wasn't buying it, though. " _Mamá_."

Her shoulders sagged as she relented, "Oh, alright. Yes, you're right, I should be at Casa de Adiós right now. I may have sneaked off when nobody was looking."

He raised an eyebrow, "How?"

"Well, somebody _maaay_ have broken the TV and blamed a certain bodyless villain for it, causing a nasty brawl between all the other retired villains," the villainess smiled innocently.

El Mal Verde frowned at his mother's words... and then promptly burst into laughter. The green-skinned villainess joined her son with her own witch-like cackles.

"That's my Mamá!" he exclaimed, wiping off a tear. He then stepped aside and gestured her to enter. "Come in. It's a bit of a mess- I didn't finish cleaning- but make yourself at home."

She smiled, "Thank you, mijo."

El Mal Verde led her to his 'living room' and asked her to wait while he got them some coffee and snacks.

The green villainess looked around her son's 'home' with a disapproving frown. The cave barely held any space for the gigantic furniture and the 'rooms' were all squeezed together, being impossible to tell where one began and where one ended.

"Mijo," she began when her son returned with the tray, "Do you not have... anywhere else to live in? I mean, you made this place... cozy, but... isn't it a bit too cramped in here?" She took one of the cups and took a sip.

"Well, ya see," El Mal Verde added two sugar cubes to his cup and stirred. "Sugar?" he offered, to which his mother refused. "I did- I _do_ have another place, but it's kinda..."

"A mess?" his mother guessed.

"Burned down, more like," El Mal Verde put the cup down. "Turns out lava isn't very good for... anything."

"Lava?!" the old villainess gasped. "Oh my, are you okay?! How did this happen?!"

"Nothing, nothing," he reassured his mother. "It's just... you remember Sartana, right? I mean, I'm sure you heard about the tournament she set up a few days ago, claiming she'd give the winner her empire. That lying snake," he muttered the last under his breath. "I'm surprised you didn't go."

The retired villainess scoffed. "I've heard about it! The guys who did go would not shut up about it, but I'm not trusting them with the whole story. As if any of those old relics could've come anywhere near to winning the tournament... Also, dealing with Sartana at my age? Please. That old hag is unbereable, I'd much rather stay at that run down building than even talk to her."

El Mal Verde snorted in amusement. "But enough about me, mijo. Are you alright?" she asked after taking another sip.

"Yes...? As you can see, I'm not injuried or anything. Did you hear something from the other retired villains?"

"Well, a few things, yes..." she set the cup down. "I heard you were having trouble with the Riveras... especially their young boy."

El Mal Verde's good mood quickly soured with the remainder. "El Tigre... next time I see him, I'll-"

"Yes, yes, calm down dear, you'll break the china."

El Mal Verde sighed and put the cup down. "And what? Did you really come just to talk about that?"

"Can't a mother come check up on her son every now and then?" she asked. "But no, I didn't. In fact, I came to offer you my help."

"Your help?" El Mal Verde raised his eyebrows. "No offense, mamá, but I don't-"

"Don't disrespect your mother, boy!" she scolded him. "I figured, since we haven't spent any time together lately, we could hunt down some heroes together."

"Besides," she grabbed her broom. "All this talk of action made me wish to be on field once more. It's been a while since La Bruja Verde gave the people of Miracle City a taste of true terror. Now..." she jumped off of her chair.

"How about we hunt a tiger?"

* * *

"Mother?"

Carmelita pushed the door just enough to peek inside. Her mother was sitting on the bed and had her back turned to her. Seconds passed by and she made no sign she'd heard her. Carmelita frowned at the lack of response. She did not search the entire house looking for her just to be ignored.

"Mother," she repeated a little louder this time as she entered the room. "What are you doing? I've been looking everywhere for you! Do you know where..." Carmelita's voice trailed off as she noticed her mother still hadn't moved. "Mother? Mother, are you listening?"

"Hm-hmm," Pachita nodded absentmindedly. "Whatever you say, sweetie."

Carmelita growled. She grabbed her mother's shoulder so she'd face her and stop being so annoying, "Just what are you-"

The taller villainess stopped mid-question when she saw what had her mother so entertained. "Are those... albums?"

Pachita hummed and patted the spot next to her. Carmelita scowled but complied, feeling a bit curious about her mother's behavior. She looked over her mother's shoulder- there were two albums piled together to her other side and one sitting on her lap. She made out the titles 'Zoe' and 'Pachita'. Carmelita's gaze drifted to the album her mother was holding. The title 'Carmelita' popped out against the green color of the folder in ink-black, fancy handwriting.

"Ah, of course you'd be going through my embarrassing photos just when I find you," Carmelita muttered under her breath.

Pachita smirked. "Who's to say _I_ didn't grab this photo _because_ you just found me?"

Carmelita bristled at the older woman's mocking tone, "You-"

Pachita snickered at how easy it was to fluster her daughter. She opened the album and flipped the pages, skimming through old photos of her daughter as an infant and a toddler. She softly muttered as she flipped the pages, commenting on the photos she saw, 'cute', 'cute', 'pacifier', 'bratty,' 'potty training', 'cute', 'not so cute'. Pachita could see her daughter getting redder with each photo and the following comment. Carmelita looked like she was on the verge of throttling her, Pachita mused, which was something that remained unchanged throughout the years and still amused the elder Aves greatly.

"Ah, here it is," Pachita held the page, having finally found the photo she'd been looking for. She tapped the photo, "Look, mija. Remember this?"

Carmelita huffed and glared at her mother, still angry at the humiliation her mother had been putting her through, but complied nonetheless. She narrowed her eyes as she looked at the photo.

The picture showed a very young girl, around 4-5 years old, short black hair, wearing a pretty green dress with a black bow in the front and smilling at the camera. She was holding a crudely colored drawing of what seemed to be herself and her mother in front of her, both hands enveloping the piece of paper tightly but utmost care.

Carmelita's glare softened with mild surprise and recognition. "This is..."

"The day you told me you wanted to be an artist when you grew up," Pachita smiled, eyes filled with affection and nostalgia. "After that you started taking art lessons and never stopped. Well, until you became a teenager and then made your teacher run out crying," Pachita paused in thought. "I think she stopped painting ever since."

Carmelita scoffed and looked away, nose high in the air, "She was a disgrace, that's what she was! Even as a brat I could not only paint better than her, but also spot what was of good value or not. The art world requires thick skin- if she got traumatized by a mere kid, than she didn't deserve to be part of that world. I did her, and all the other artists in the world, a favor."

Pachita rolled her eyes. "Ah, yes, and it must be that charming attitude that makes your students love you," Pachita muttered under her breath.

Carmelita glared at her mother. "I don't need to be loved. If they're bad, I'll be hard on them, If they're good, I'll be harder. That's how they'll improve," she crossed her arms. "Besides, I'm just there to collect information and keep an eye on Zoe, and you know that."

Not for the first time, Pachita wondered who had Carmelita gotten that 'swim-or-sink' attitude from, but quickly shoved the thought aside. "Hmm, I see... then you don't mind taking a look at how much you improved, yes, mija?"

The taller woman frowned. "What do you-"

Her question was cut short when she saw her mother slowly drawing out a dark green portfolio from under the pillow. Pachita shifted her eyes between her daughter and the folder in her hands, delibaretly moving as slowly as she could.

Pachita took satisfaction at how her daughter's expression changed from confusion, to shock when realization dawned on her face, to unspeakable horror and shame, to poorly concealed embarrassement and anger.

"Oh yes, you know what this is," Pachita shook the portfolio in mockery. "Aaall your cute, old little drawings from when you were still learning."

"You still have that stupid thing?" Carmelita huffed, trying to conceal how nervous she was, "Throw it away, mother, it's nothing but worthless garbage!"

"Oh, is it? So you don't care what I do with it, huh?"

Carmelita narrowed her eyes in suspicion, but refused to give in to her mother's teasing. "No. I don't care one bit."

"Hm, hm," Pachita hummed and nodded. "Very well, since you do not mind I was thinking in showing this to a few people. Just you know, a few people, like our dear Zoe, my villain friends, your co-workers, your students, your exes-"

Pachita dodged just in time to avoid her daughter, who lunged at her quicker than she thought possible. Carmelita got up and clenched her fists. "Give it back to me, mother. Now."

Pachita stared at her daughter for a moment then shrugged. "Well, alright, mija, if you insist... Quick, catch!" The older villainess threw the 'Carmelita' album at her and dashed out of the room, her turkey-like cackles echoing along the halls.

Carmelita growled as she threw the album back on the bed and ran after her mother. The diversion may have worked and gave her mother a headstart, but she was faster, and her legs were longer, there was no way she'd let her crazy old mother escape! "Come back here! Give it back!"

"Only if you catch me first!" Pachita then pressed a buttom on her wristwatch and transformed into Lady Gobbler. "See ya!" she mockingly waved at her daughter and blew a raspberry before flying out of their home.

Carmelita growled in frustation and pressed a similar wristwatch, transforming into Voltura, before she too, took off after her mother, continuing the chase in the darkening skies of Miracle City.

Lady Gobbler looked back at her daughter with a smirk. That should be enough to distract her from asking where she'd put the blueprints for their next plan anytime soon. Or at least, until she got new ones. Lady Gobbler wasn't about to tell her daughter she'd destroyed the old ones while she was cooking, after all.

Besides, it'd been a while since they'd played around like this or spent any quality time together that didn't involve villainly. Plus, it could do Carmelita some good. That girl was way too serious all the time. Lady Gobbler laughed under her breath before taunting her daughter one more time.

"C'mon, mija! Next stop, Casa de Adiós! The old relics are gonna love your sweet childhood drawings!"

" _Mooootheeeer_!"

* * *

"Very good, everyone. That's enough for today."

General Chapuza looked at his watch one last time before tucking it back into his pocket. Today's results were... satisfactory, he supposed. Better than last time, for sure. They were faster, stronger, and much better prepared for the next match- even if the opponent teams had some dirty tricks up their sleeves such as traps, bribing or _using their Mystical Objects of Power during the game,_ victory was sure to be theirs.

Now if only some of his players would cooperate better and do as he told them, like cutting down on the puppy consumption or getting a new haircut because the current one was too long...

Chapuza turned his cold gaze from said stubborn mules when he heard footsteps approaching in his direction. Shifting his gaze slightly to the left, Chapuza could see his dear grandson jog up to him with the ball under his arm.

Che was the best player of his team, the star, without a doubt. If he weren't a zombie, Chapuza mused, he could've been a professional futból player. And a damn good one too.

"Grandfather!" his grandson called after him. "So, how was it?" the undead boy looked at the older man, eager to see the results of his training.

Chapuza's cold eyes softened the slighest and his lips showed the vaguest hint of a smile. "Very good as usual, my boy. Great even," he patted the boy on the head, ruffling his wild hair a little.

Che groaned in objection at having his hair messed and pushed his grandfather's hand away, although his smile betrayed any grouchiness he tried to convey. Chapuza smiled more openly at his reaction.

"Good enough to win against anyone?"

Chapuza raised an eyebrow at the question. "Yes," he folded his arms behind his back. "Like we've always done so, my grandson."

Che looked down, sensing his grandfather's silent inquiry. He started play with the ball, not wanting to answer it, "Oh, that's... awesome. Can't wait to crush them!"

"Che."

The undead boy stopped playing and looked up again. "Yes, grandfather?"

Chapuza just stared at his grandson, hoping for an explanation for his weird behavior. Seconds passed and the boy just stared back, giving no signs he'd anwser any time soon. Chapuza relented and sighed. "El Tigre?"

Che grunted and picked up his ball again. "He's a rude, empty-headed imbecile and should be taught a lesson," he muttered under his breath.

Chapuza hummed in agreement. "Indeed. That boy's arrogance has become unbearable as of late... Something should be done to... remedy that." He turned to his grandson, "Unfortunately, I don't think beating him at sports again will do anything in that regard."

"Yeah..." Che kicked a peeble on the ground. "If only we could get him to fight us here in our district, we could show just how terryfying and strong us zombies can be..."

The two started to walk home in silence, mulling over their discussion.

"Say, grandfather," Che asked, breaking the silence. "Remember that story you told me... about that guy who lost his head or something? Because of one of our own?"

"Well, he actually lost everything but his head but yes, yes, I do," Chapuza looked at his grandson with an eyebrow raised, intrigued by what he was suggesting. Che was a very smart boy, but surely he was underestimating his enemy. "Let me warn you, Che, do not think it'll be easy to get El Tigre off his guard enough to get a zombie to bite him and turn him into one."

"Well, yeah... but it's not really him I had in mind, you see..."

"Oh?" Chapuza was even more intrigued. "Do elaborate, my grandson."

Che gladly complied and told his grandfather his plan, should El Tigre continue with his obnoxious, arrogant, insolent ways next time he faced off against them.

Chapuza listened to him, silently surprised how he hadn't come up with something similar himself.

His grandson was a smart boy indeed.

* * *

 **Author's note: Just a little something I thought about the other day. I don't think any of the family dynamics other than the Riveras' are explored enough in the fandom. Understandable, since they were the focus of the show and we never saw much of the other families but still.**

 **Also, I'm pretty sure it's clear by now that I like to pick certain background characters and give them some sort of role in my stories, etc... So! Besides Tenebrous Toreador (another nameless background character) there two or three other background characters that often appeared in Casa de Adiós. One of them was this cowboy/witch-looking green-skinned old lady, and I pretty much went 'hey, she's the only green character other than Mal Verde, what if they were related?'**

 **I also originally intended for the section with Pachita and Carmelita to be much sweeter- a quiet moment, if you will. But I guess this is affectionate too. For them at least. Maybe.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'll probably do other similar chapters in the future, trying out different family dynamics and such. Tell me in the comments which one was your favorite or which other dynamic would you be interested in seeing!**


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